Growing Up
by Blossom cat
Summary: Every dragon slayer goes through five different stages of growing up. Natsu seemed to be a late bloomer as he started to go through these stages at eighteen years of age.
1. His height

I **don't even know where I got this idea from, but I hope it's enjoyable.**

 **Disclaimer- I do not own Fairy Tail or it's characters**

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Natsu awoke to the sounds of birds chirping and the wind blowing the leaves around in the cool autumn's morning. It was a particularly peaceful morning. Happy was curled up on Natsu's chest, purring and shuffling around, trying to get into the right position. Natsu smiled fondly at his blue feline.

"Happy...happy wake up." He whispered into the exceed's ear. Happy groaned and lifted his head slightly, looking around the room tiredly.

"What time is it?" Natsu shrugged and picked up happy. He set him down on the wood floor boards and planted his feet on the floor and stood up, stretching as he did so. Scratching his back he look towards happy who stared at him with wide eyes. "N-Natsu..." Natsu started to panic.

"What?" Natsu asked as he made his way to the bathroom. The only reason he stopped though was because the top of the door frame hit his forehead. "Gah!" He backed up and held his forehead, feeling the sharp pain hitting his head caused. He started to feel a headache coming on. He always knew the door frame was a little short, but he always stepped through it just fine. Did it get shorter?

"I think you got taller, Natsu. Like...a lot taller." Natsu blinked a few times before looking towards the ground. It looked a lot far down than he was used too. His legs looked longer as well as his torso. His shoulders got broader and he feet and hands grew slightly in size as well. What the hell was going on with his body?

"We better go to the guild." Natsu said as he _tried_ putting on his usual outfit. The only thing that fit was his scarf. He dug through his closet to look for anything to wear that fit. Anything! He ran a restless hand through his hair as anxiety started to creep up on him. He had no clothes and no way to get to the guild without being seen half naked. He cringed as he slightly turned to see a concerned happy.

"What're we going to do?" Natsu felt his eye twitch and he stood tall, extra tall.

"Happy, whose clothes do you think will fit me now? I want you to ask them if I can borrow something for the time being. Just hurry back as soon as possible so I can run to the guild and figure out what the hell is going on." Happy nodded and started from Natsu's feet and ran his eyes up to his head.

"You're not going to like who I say." Natsu pouted and crossed his arms.

"Who is it?"

"Gajeel" Natsu growled loudly and stomped around his house, not liking Happy's answer. The iron dragon slayer had a horrible sense of style, but he had no choice but to ask him for help. Gajeel would never let him live it down and he'd probably make Natsu owe him forever. _But he had no choice._

"Gah, fine. Just tell him the truth and bring some of his clothes back quickly. I'm starting to get uncomfortable walking around with only boxers on." Happy giggled and sprug up his wings.

"Aye sir!" Happy flew out their window and used his max speed to fly to the guild. He made it there in record time and slammed open the door with a huff. "Gajeel! We need your help!" Gajeel looked up from his iron meal, startled by the blue cat's outburst. Everyone's attention was in the two of them by now. Gajeel coughed and stood up.

"What the hell is your deal? Interrupting my meal like this." Gajeel crossed his arms and made his way up to the desperate animal. "Who needs my help anyway?"

"It's Natsu! He needs to borrow some of your clothes." Gajeel deadpanned for a few seconds, giving happy a confused glare. Gajeel then seemed to realize the situation and he busted out laughing. Almost falling to the ground in the process. By now, everyone was confused. Lucy in particular ran up to Happy.

"What's wrong with him? Is he okay?" Lucy couldn't mask the worry she was feeling as she asked happy. She was starting to get worried when she noticed they weren't in the guild when she arrived herself. It was almost an hour after that that Happy showed up in a panic, making her scared for her team mate's well being.

"He's okay, Lucy, but he's really tall now. Almost as tall as Gajeel, but I'm not sure he's quite there yet. But we need to borrow some of your clothes Gajeel because the ones he has arrived too small now." Lucy was beyond puzzled now. Natsu is almost as tall as Gajeel now and he needs Gajeel's clothes to wear because...his don't fit?

"What? How did he get taller?"

"I don't know but with all of Gajeel's laughing, I'm sure he knows." Lucy stood up on her toes and smacked the back of Gajeel's head, making him stop his laughing abruptly and glare at the celestial mage.

"Dammit- bunny girl!"

"Tell us! What's going in on with Natsu?" Gajeel grumbled and sighed eventually.

"Let's just get the salamander some clothes first and then I'll explain it when we get back here. Natsu with us." Lucy nodded and they left the guild in a frenzy. Gajeel had ran back to where he lived while happy and Lucy ran to Natsu and Happy's house. Gajeel caught up to them quickly while they ran and all three of them made it to Natsu's house in under thirty minutes.

"Stay here, bunny girl. The salamander will let you know when you can come in." Lucy rolled her eyes and nodded. She sat down on his deck and watched as Happy and Gajeel stepped inside. Gajeel gagged as he saw the message around them. "Where is he?"

"Follow me" Said happy as they avoided the garbage on the floor. They turned a corner of their house and found Natsu laying on his hammock, nothing on but his boxers. Gajeel held back his laugh as Natsu glared at him.

"Give me clothes you metal head." He held out his hand. His face felt on fire at the embarrassment he felt at this whole situation. He was sure his face was the same color as his hair. Unfortunately for him, Gajeel wasn't going to just give him his clothes.

"I'll let you borrow some...if you announce to the whole guild that I'm the strongest mage you've ever laid eyes on and that I could defeat you with the flick of my wrist." Gajeel grinned sadistically. Natsu was already frustrated, but the anger he was feeling right now could never compare to anything he felt before.

"Hell no, iron breath!"

"Then I guess you can just walk to the guild like _that._ " Natsu was reminded of his current predicament. Groaning he finally coughed up the one word he thought he'd never say to the other slayer.

"Fine."

"Fine you'll...?"

"I'll say all those untrue things to the guild." Gajeel wanted to protest but figured that was the closest way he'd get the fire mage to agree with him. He tossed Natsu some of his older clothes and watched as Natsu stood up and trudged his way to the bathroom. Gajeel finally got a good look at his height and noticed just how tall he got. He was almost as tall as himself, it kind if of freaked him out. He watched as Natsu hit his head one last time on the door frame and he ducked his head after cursing. Gajeel laughed at his misfortune.

"You kidding me you jerk! You gave me some of the worst shit I've ever seen!" Gajeel felt slightly offended but cackled all the while. He saw Natsu walk out (ducking this time) with one of older outfits. A black worn out and ripped shirt, plain. The pants were a musty green with rips all along the bottom of the pants. It was by far one of his worst outfits. He usually wore those to bed. "You asshole! You chose the worst possible clothing for me!"

"Don't worry salamander, i'm sure blondie out there will take you clothes shopping." Natsu sniffed the air and ran to his door, opening it swiftly.

"L-Lucy? What're you doing here?"

"You couldn't sense me here before?"

"I was uh...a little distracted." That's when she noticed his attire. She felt a ticket mark on her forehead, caused by the iron dragon slayer.

"The hell are you wearing. Why did Gajeel pick those? That jerk!" She finally stood and wanted to push Natsu passed her so she could give the other slayer a piece of her mind. The only problem was that he was so _tall_ and _wide._ He'd have back up before she could get through. She finally looked up slightly to tell the fire mage to move, but she just came face to face with his chest. Feeling her cheeks aflame, she traveled her eyes upwards but she still couldn't find his own eyes. Finally, after for what seemed like ages, she found his face.

"Are you okay? Your face is red." He furrowed his brows. _is she sick,_ he thought. She turned away from him as the red in her face deepened severely.

"Uh- um uh, I'm fine! I just need to get through."

"No need bunny girl. Ya found me." Gajeel stomped out of the door, pushing Natsu forward in the process. Natsu stumbled in front of Lucy, making her come face to face with his chest again.

"Sorry Luce..." Natsu chuckled and held onto her upper arms to restore his balance. She inwardly groaned and felt her heartbeat spike. Gajeel smirked while she glared at him.

"Anyway," she ripped herself out of Natsu's arm. "Why would you give him such ratty clothes. Are you trying to make him look homeless?" She planted her hands on her hips and watched as Gajeel winced slightly at her gaze.

"I figured you'd buy him something."

"Oh, me huh? It's always me." She sighed and raised her head to meet his eyes. He didn't look all there, probably because of what's going on. She wouldn't be all there either if she were him. She grabbed his bigger hand and tugged him forward. It was slightly harder to do now that he was bigger, but she wasn't all that weak. "Fine, after you explain to us and the guild what's going on I'll get him some clothes. For now, let's just go." She explained to Gajeel and Natsu. Happy followed silently behind them. They finally made it to the guy and they opened it slowly.

"Hey, they're back!" Gray yelled. Everyone froze when gazing upon Natsu. Gray even looked astonished at how much taller he was. "How did this...happen?" He asked Gajeel. Finally, Gajeel started to explain what was going on.

"It's a dragon slayer thing. How do you think me and Laxus got so tall? Even Cobra is getting there." He sighed irritably when he found no on was following him. "Dragon slayers go through different stages in their physical bodies. There are around four more stages to come and apparently salamander is late bloomer."

"Hey! I resent that!"

"Every _male_ dragon slayer go through a particular high growth spurt where they sprout up like a damn weed. I was fifteen when it happened to me, phantom lord barely recognized me."

"Oh yes, Juvia was taller than Gajeel-kun before his growth spurt. How the times have changed." Everyone was shocked to hear that. Juvia being taller than Gajeel, they couldn't imagine it. Gajeel scoffed and turned to Natsu.

"You've just had your growth spurt, fire breath. You're not going to die or anything, you just might hit your head a lot." He chuckled. Natsu hummed in annoyance. As much as he was made fun of for being one of the shorter males, he didn't mind it. Now he's going to have to buy all new clothes, probably buy a new hammock. And he's going to have to watch out for low hanging things, how annoying.

"So I guess we just have to get used to this huh?" Gray said. He was slightly irritated that his rival surpassed his height when originally he was the taller one. The dragon slayer only looked to have grown four inches, but that was three inches taller than Gray. Jealousy was starting to cloud his mind.

"I guess so. It's gonna be weird eh?" Lucy laughed, patting Natsu's upper back.

"I'm gettin' sick of the stares."

"Maybe it's because you look like a hobo." Natsu remembered that he was wearing the rags gajeel lent him. "Tell ya what," Lucy started. "I'll head into town and grab you some clothes. Do you know where you got your original outfit, I could probably just get you the same outfit but just a couple sizes up."

Natsu tapped his chin in thought. "Don't remember" Lucy sweat dropped.

"Figured...oh whatever, I'll look around. See ya in around an hour okay? Meet me at my apartment." He watched as Lucy left the guild. He was about to sit down when he felt a tap on his shoulder. Gajeel.

"Remember the deal?" Natsu winced and nodded with a groan. He stood tall and proud and shouted throughout the guild.

"Gajeel is the strongest mage I've ever laid eyes on and he could defeat me with the flick of his wrist!" The guild members either busted out laughing or stared at him in shock, their mouths hanging wide open. Natsu ignored them and trudged off in the corner of the room. He wanted to punch something so bad. But at the same time he just wanted to sleep. Between Gajeel and this growth spurt ordeal, he was just so tired. Wanting to sleep so bad.

He guessed sleep would just have to wait.

 _Meanwhile with Lucy_

She walked into a men's store, not saying a word. Already stressed out by her rapidly beating heart every time she even looked at Natsu, and the fact that the feeling that she was able to push down for the pink haired man are now resurfacing. She looked around for a few minutes before a man came up to her.

"Looking for anything in particular miss?" He must of worked there. He was in uniform and acting very professional. She nodded and dug through her purse, pulling out a picture of her and Natsu she kept in there. Don't ask her why.

"Um, yes. I'm trying to find this exact outfit," she pointed at Natsu's attire. "Do you have any for sale or in stock?" He adjusted the glasses framing his face. With a smile, he nodded and led to through isles. They stopped at one that was towards the back and she found a whole rack with Natsu's outfit hanging up. She would of never thought he bought his clothes here of all places. The place was so...fancy. She thanked the man and watched as he helped another customer.

"Hmm, let's see the price." She held up the price tag and coughed violently when she saw the price. _How did Natsu afford these!_ She thought to herself. One outfit costed seventy thousand jewel. She dug through her purse and pulled out the necessary jewels to buy two pairs. _There goes the jewels I was going to use for two months worth of rent._ She guessed she'd just have to take a high paying job. She grabbed them off their rack and made it up to the counter. The cashier greeted her kindly.

"Good afternoon Miss, is this everything?"

"Yes ma'am." She greeted back with a smile.

"These outfits sure are...eccentric. You don't see too many people wear this outfit outside the great salamander of Fairy Tail. You'd think because of him they'd be more popular. Maybe their price makes customers shy away. I've seen quite a lot of women come here to buy one but not be able to afford one. So tell me...are you his fan?" The woman said, trying to make small talk. Lucy felt her face go red amd she denied her accusation.

"No no no, I'm not a fan. I'm actually a close friend of his. He's in the need for...better fitting clothes." The woman's eyes went wide.

"I knew you looked familiar. You're the salamander's princess to his dragon, Lucy Heartfilia. Oh wow! It's so great to meet someone so close to Natsu." The woman stuck out her hand eagerly and waited for Lucy to shake her hand. Lucy did awkwardly. She thought back to what the woman said as she handed Lucy her bag.

"Princess to his...dragon?" She asked the woman, stunned by what just came out of the lady's mouth.

"Oh yes, that's what everyone calls you. You're famous for being _his_ princess."

"Uh yeah...thank you."

"Please come back anytime. Maybe you could bring salamander some time!" Lucy smiled politely and left the store. Her inner turmoil was starting to show as she got looks on the street.

Princess to his dragon.

Princess to his dragon.

Princess to _his_ dragon.

Her face burned a bright red when she reached her home. Slamming the door closed she stepped into her room and look out a loud pitched scream seeing an intruder in her window.

"W-Wait Luce! Don't hit me, it's just me!" Lucy had a key in front of her as if she were about to call out one of her spirits. She sighed in relief when she heard a familiar voice. Growling, she dropped her arm.

"You idiot. I thought you were some burglar. What are you doing, get in!"

"I-I-I'm stuck..." Natsu said embarrassingly. She watched as he struggled to get in, but with him being a lot taller it was near impossible. She felt the smile return on her face and she grabbed his hand and tugged on his body. Eventually, she got him to fall in onto her bed and saw as he sprawled his body on her bed. "I was there for like twenty minutes!"

"That's why you use the damn door. You could have just asked Mira for my spare apartment key and she would of gave it to you. Mavis knows she'd probably be thrilled." Lucy rolled her eyes at the thought. She stared at him for a moment. He was laying straight and his feet were hanging of the bed! He had to be about 6'0 or 6'1 as of now. She giggled to herself, digging through her bag to find his clothes. She never imagined him to be this tall. She used to reach the top of his ear and now she's right below his shoulder. How weird.

"What're you giggling about?" He asked her in a skeptical manner.

"Oh nothing!" She mused and tossed him an outfit. "Put this on in the bathroom okay?" He smiled brightly at the familiar clothing items. He then felt a slight pang if guilt. He knew they were on the expensive side.

"Sorry if they were expensive..."

"Let's just go on a bunch of jobs to make it up to me okay? I'll need it after spending one hundred and forty thousand jewels on only two outfits." He rubbed his neck and apologized again, coming up to hug her. She froze as she could see nothing but darkness. Somehow it felt warm and inviting instead of cold and distant. She embraced it. Hugging him back, she looked upward to find him looking down at her. "What?" She asked.

"Nothing...you're just like Levy now, a shrimp" irritation nipped at her nerves. Now she knows how Levy feels. She banged on his chest and stuck out her bottom lip in a pout.

"I'm not short! You just grew, now go get dressed before I take these clothes back." He tore away from her and ran to the bathroom in a hurry. After he shut the door, she plopped down on her couch. How could ones height have such an effect on her. She thought she didn't care for trivial things such as physical appearance (she fell for a pink haired man did she not?) but seeing him grow so tall, it was... attractive. Don't get her wrong, he was attractive before but she would get jealous of Levy from time to time.

She would hug Gajeel and she could dig herself in his chest and it was cute becuase of their height differences. Before when Lucy would hug Natsu, she would wrap her arms around his neck and would have to bend slightly to lay her head on his shoulder but now...she would have to wrap her arms around the middle of his back and lay her head on his _chest._ The mere thought had her blushing bright red.

"Stupid Lucy and your thoughts!" Lucy slapped herself to stop the never ending thoughts about the dragon slayer.

"Weirdo, why are you slapping yourself?" Natsu chuckled. She looked up and smiled at the familiar look. It was starting to weird her out as he wore that ripped up hobo outfit.

Ignoring his insult, she asked "Does it fit well?" He held his thumb up and gave her his signature toothy grin.

"Yup." She stood and walked up to him.

"You look like you're back to normal. I'm glad, it was weird for you to be dressing so weird." Natsu made a sound of annoyance and agreed with her.

"Stupid metal mouth and his tricks! He made me dress like I was some kind of...drunk guy. I have a little more class than that!" She laughed at him. He may not act like it, but he is really passionate about what he wears. Even though his sense of style is a little weird, he can make anything look good. She gave him a closed mouth smile and felt her cheeks flush slightly.

Natsu noticed this and felt his own face heat up. She really did look like Levy. He could see far over the top of her head and he had to crank his neck down to even meet her gaze. He didn't know why her being so much shorter than himself made his ego swell, maybe that's why Gajeel is so full of himself. Natsu grinned like he usually did and planted his hand on her head and pat it slightly. He then felt a streak of mischief course through him. Why not mess with the blonde?

"Lucy..." She squeaked and looked up at him. He smirked at his partner and stepped forward, making her step back. She reeled backward until her back hit the wall and he caged her with himself. He positioned a hand above her head and planted the other hand on his hip. He dipped forward and chuckled as her entire skin flared red.

"N-Natsu! What the hell are you doing you freak..." She started out strong but mumbled the last part when he started to get closer to her face.

"Why're you red. Am I embarrassing you?" He asked slowly, his voice going husky. Lucy lifted her hands up and put them over his face to create a distance. And because she didn't want him to see her so flushed.

"No!" She denied. It was a lie though, but it didn't stop her from trying to seem convincing.

"Hm, you've seen a bit different ever since my growth spurt...don't tell me that me getting taller has," He grinned mischievously. "Turned you on?" That was when she exploded. She couldn't form a single coherent thought and she just murmured random sentences. She was nervous, very very nervous. Not only what he said was incredibly embarrassing, it was correct. She was always attracted to the pyro, but the attraction spiked since he got taller, she would feel...things and think things she wasn't supposed to. And this was all in the time span of around a few hours! She must be losing her damn mind.

"J-Jerk...embarrassing me like this. I outta kick you." Natsu laughed and finally uncaged the smaller mage. Ruffling her head, he retorted back to her.

"It's okay Lucy, not everyone is immune to my charms" She snorted and crossed her arms.

"As if, you weirdo."

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 **Chapter two will be stage two. Not sure what it'll be yet, but I'll figure out. Hope this was enjoyable for all of you so far. Towards the end of this chapter, I had a bit if writers block so I apologize if it's not that good.**


	2. His Voice

**Back and ready to write. I hope you've all been enjoying it so far, I know I've been enjoying writing.**

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Lucy wasn't the only one who noticed it. Gajeel had told the guild Natsu was going through five different phases, but she didn't think they'd all happen in the time span of a month. After about a week of Natsu growth spurt, the second stage had kicked in. Not only had it flustered Lucy, but it enhanced her feelings towards the slayer. These stages we're making her go insane.

"You've noticed too, haven't you Lucy?" Mira had asked one day. She was leaning her elbows on the bar counter and sporting a mischievous smile. Lucy knew exactly what she was talking about, which had her blushing like a damn fool

"N-Noticed what?" She tried her best to conceal her knowledge about the subject and decided to play ignorant. Too bad Mira wasn't having any of that.

"You know what I'm talking about, Lucy. Don't play dumb with me." Mira waved a finger in front of Lucy's face, scolding her. Lucy inwardly groaned at the way Mira was interrogating her. As much as Lucy loved the white haired bar tender, she was just so nosy when it came to others romantic business.

"Okay fine, jeez. I noticed." Lucy grumbled and crossed her arms. She decided to turn away from Mira so she couldn't look at how her cheeks flamed a bright red. Mira was no fool though. She noticed the minute Lucy turned away. Giggling, Mira gazed over to the exact person they were talking about.

"He's so different now. Now only has he gotten so much taller, his voice is just...wow." Mira couldn't even finish her sentence she was so astonished. Lucy agreed with Mira on this one. It was around three days ago that Natsu's voice has changed from it's slight crack and on the higher side to this deep and husky tone. At first, Lucy just thought it was weird and kind of funny, but the more she heard it the more it would give her goose bumps of excitement. The more she have to conceal her moans every time he would talk even remotely close to her.

"Yeah really. It's going to kill me." Lucy mumbled quietly.

"What was that?"

"Oh nothing!" Mira laughed and ran off to serve some of her other guild mates. Lucy sighed in relief and closed her eyes. The last week and a half had been so tiring for her and all she wanted was to go home and take a nap. But somehow, every time she tried to sleep he would be next to her by the time she woke up. It was getting harder and harder to keep herself back. Maybe she would just take a nap here...

"You Luce!" Natsu said, planting his hand on her back and leaning close to her ear. She squealed and swiftly lifted her head, only to bang it on his shoulder. Yelping, she leaned forward slightly and put a hand to the back of her head.

"Natsu! You dolt, don't scare me like that!" Natsu cackled and held his stomach from laughing so hard. Lucy huffed and pouted. He even laughed deeper! It was almost scary how much he was changing right in front of her. She kind of missed his older self. Missed his innocent boyish charms. But she wasn't exactly opposed to this new version of Natsu. He was still himself, but just more mature sounding...and looking.

"Oh Lucy, you should of seen your face! It was priceless!" She slapped his arm and turned away from him. Yeah, he was still himself. Still an annoying little kid.

"You're annoying!"

"Oh come on, you know I was only messing with you..." He whispered. "Besides, I know you can't stay mad at me for very long." He smirked, leaning into her ear once more. Growling, she pushed his face away from her with her palm. He was embarrassing her.

"Would you stop with that. What are you looking to accomplish?" She asked him in annoyance and tint of curiosity. Ever since all the nonsense had happened, he'd been acting really weird. He was being extra clingly and kept teasing her. To be completely honest, she kind if liked it, but she would never admit it to anyone.

"You're just so cute when you get embarrassed. I want to see more of that side." Natsu purred, grabbing a strand of her hair, putting it against his lips in an attempt to embarrass her once more time. Fortunately for him, it did work. Her face went crimson as she tugged her hair from out of his grasp.

"Stop teasing me..." She whined. He chuckled and pat her head, sitting down, he called over Mira. He asked her for a drink and started to make conversation with Lucy. They talked about their next mission and when they were going to take it. He started to eat once Mira bright over his food, but still managed to hold the conversation with Lucy.

"Say Natsu..." She asked suddenly. "what do you think about all the things happening to your body. I mean, you have to have noticed that your voice got deeper by now." Natsu stopped eating and looked up to the ceiling in thought. _What did he think about it all?_

"Kind of annoying I guess. I mean one minute I was this average height guy and now I'm as tall as Gajeel, one of the tallest in our freaking guild. And now my voice is as deep as his, it's something I'm not particularly used to, but I guess it would of happened sooner or later." He said thoughtfully. Lucy was surprised by his answer. It was a genuinely thought out answer, something she wasn't too use to when it came to the slayer. "But it's a lot of fun to make you blush"

And there it was. He always had to ruin his intellectual answers with something stupid. She hummed in annoyance.

"You're an idiot." She stated finally, she dug through her purse she had sitting on the counter and pulled out a book. Opening, she started to read.

"Ugh, Lucy~ we were having a conversation~" Natsu moaned. She just chose to ignore him and kept her eyes on the page, finally getting to the good part. He narrowed his eyes and started to poke her face so that she would pay attention to him. Feeling a spike in irritation, Lucy grabbed the back of his head and slammed it down on the counter. "Ack!" He yelled as he made contact with the wood.

"Shut up, idiot. Your voice is annoying." She started to run her fingers through his hair, making him relax slightly and give in to feeling. He got more comfortable and leaned into her touch. He then scooted closer to her, making her blush.

"You know you love my voice. Before and after..." He said as he started to dose off. Lucy scoffed and sighed.

"Whatever, think what you like." He grinned.

 _8:00 pm_

"cy...ucy...Lucy, wake up." She moaned at the familiar voice. Her head felt heavy as she lifted it from off the bar counter. With tired eyes, she looked up at who called her name. It was Mira. Lucy smiled widely, drunk on tiredness and snuggled back into her arms.

"It's just Mira, no danger..." Lucy yawned. She heard Mira giggle softly and felt a hard shake to her shoulder.

"Lucy you need to wake up and go home, it's eight o'clock at night. You gotta get Natsu home too." Hearing Natsu's name sobered her up and she lifted her head once more. Glancing tiredly at the sleeping Natsu beside her, she sighed. She shook Natsu violently to get him up quickly. It looked like Mira kindly waited for them, but she seemed to have wanted to go home hours ago.

"Wah, I'm up I'm up." Natsu grunted. He stood up and brought Lucy with him. "C'mon happy, I'll carry you home." He hoisted Lucy up, making her squeak. Natsu stumbled out of the guild and made his way down the street.

"Natsu, wake the hell up. It's me, Lucy!" He looked down at the blonde mage and eventually realized that this woman was not, in fact, happy, but his best friend. He blinked and set done the mage.

"Mm, sorry Luce. Didn't know it was you." He grinned sheepishly

"Yeah whatever, ya pyro." She dusted herself off and slapped Natsu's cheeks to wake him up. "Wake up and go home." He nodded and turned, walking away from her. She shook her head with a smile and jumped on the ledge, heading to hee apartment. Her mind started to drift the fire mage. Natsu sure was something, even with everything going on with his body, he never changed his personality and his weirdness.

He always manages to make her smile, even with his annoying and relentless teasing that he started only recently. Lucy finally made it to her apartment and made it to her door, opening it, she set her down on the kitchen table. During her travel to the bathroom, she managed to get her shirt and pants off. She made it into the bathroom and turned on the faucet to the shower. She stepped in with a pleasurable sigh and squirted shampoo into her hair.

She scrubbed her scalp. She thought back to last month. How everything was normal. She thought how crazy life can just turn itself around in less than a month. She smiled fondly at the old Natsu she came to love so much. She guessed getting used to this new one is the best thing she can do for the time being. Washing the soap from her hair, she turned off the faucet and stepped out of the tub and wrapped a towel around her body. She looked at herself in the mirror and saw that her face was red. Thinking about Natsu again had her all flustered.

She quickly dressed into her pajamas and ran to her bed. Getting under the covers, she turned off her lamp and snuggled close to her pillow. She shivered slightly at the cool with that seemed to have squeezed through her slightly opened window. She was cold...really cold. Her shiver became violent and her teeth chattered. If only her heater worked, but it had been broke down for a year now. She figured she wouldn't need it as she had her own fire mage to keep her warm during the winter. That was the only season she didn't kick him out like she would before.

She then felt a huge gust of wind blow into her room and heard the sound of her window opening. She heard a low voice cursing about not being able to fit. She felt a small smile tug at her lips. She should of known he'd come sooner or later. She bounced when he was finally able to fit though the window. He grunted and got under her covers, not bothering to be gentle.

"I know you're awake." He whispered. She froze. She wasn't exactly hiding it, but her back was turned so she didn't think he'd just be able to sense her awake. A dragon senses are far superior than a humans, she concluded. She then acknowledged his voice...it was so deep and soothing. Something that wasn't exactly apparent with his voice before. His voice now could lull her into a deep sleep as well as get her up in the morning. Smiling bigger, she turned to face him.

"Yeah, you're right." He gave her a smirk and held open his arms, asking for her to get into his arms. She was about to yell no at him before he spoke again.

"Come." It was soft but also firm and demanding. That voice was making her body moved on it's own. One word. She complied and shuffled closer to him, laying her head against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her waist and she responded by wrapping her own arms around his middle. It was slightly awkward at first, being wrapped into the dragon slayer. She tried to think about something else, but her thoughts always came back to him. "Lucy..." She jumped and shifted her eyes up to Natsu. He was looking down at her with troubled eyes. "Relax."

And she did. She just relaxed, immediately started to get comfortable. Something in his voice could make her do anything at this point. She was angry at herself for acting like putty in his hands but she just couldn't help it. She felt her ears burn and she dug her head into his chest to hide what she was feeling. She heard a faint laugh come from Natsu but she ignored it.

He was warm. Especially warm since it was getting so cold out. The warmth he was emitting was so different from warmth coming out of a heater. His warmth was making her drowsy, her eye lids starting to drop. "Hmm, Natsu." He grunted.

"Yeah Luce?"

"You're warm..." She paused. As if contemplating about what she was going to say next. "And I lied before...I've always liked your voice." And she drifted to sleep.

Natsu went frigid at her words. He groaned a little and shifted so that her head was pushed deeper into his chest as he brought a hand to his face in an attempt to hide his pretty noticeable blush. Lately, Lucy was being a little more open with her thoughts and feelings. For awhile now, she had stopped denying getting embarrassed by Natsu. She just accepted it and complained for him to stop teasing her. Even then, he didn't expect her to be this open.

It was something he wasn't used to so it surprised as well as embarrassed him. He sighed when her breath stayed steady and even. She was asleep. Good, she wouldn't see the visible and bright blush that was adorning his face. He laid his head on her pillow and thought back to Lucy. He knew about her feeling towards him, he just decided not to do anything about it so far.

He wasn't sure he was ready to be honest. As much as he loved his blonde friend, being in a relationship was far harder than others seemed to have made it. There was loads of drama, fighting, and moment where you doubt if you're actually compatible with your lover. It was alot of thinking and emotions. That sounded exactly the opposite of Natsu. He was the type of person that was shoot first, think later.

His thoughts started to get hazy as he closed his eyes. Yawning, he softly stroked Lucy's hair and felt darkness take over him. One last thought clouded his mind before he himself drifted to sleep.

Maybe one day he'd tell her he felt the same, but this was enough for now.

 _Morning_

Lucy blinked open her eyes and yawned, rubbing the tiredness out of her eyes. She wanted to lift her head, but there was an arm keeping her down on the pillow where she was currently laying. She looked up to see Natsu sleeping. She was about to scream at him until she remembered what happened last night.

"Natsu..." She said. She couldn't get up to shake him because her arms were trapped under his, but she was loud enough to stir the dragon slayer awake.

"Gah, Lucy it's too early."

"Yeah well, if we get up now we can get a job to take at the guild." That got the slayer to open his eyes immediately and untangle himself from the blonde. Lucy sat up and stretched, standing and digging through her dresser to pull out an outfit.

"Natsu, go sit on the couch while I get dressed in here." He nodded and stood, leaving her bedroom. She got dressed swiftly and went into the bathroom to brush all the knots out of her golden locks. She then brushed her teeth and sprayed a bit of perfume on herself. She grabbed her boots and put them on while she was walking to the living room. "Ready?" She asked him.

He looked at her with a smile and he nodded. They left their house in a hurry and made their way to the guild. They were about half way there when they heard a shout from behind them.

"Lucy! Natsu!" They turned to see happy with tears stuck in the corner of his eyes, flying towards them at incredible speed. He smashed right into Lucy, causing her to get knocked over. She coughed and lifted her body slightly to rest in her elbows. She gave happy a glare.

"Care to tell me why you're out to kill me?" She raised a brown when he dug his head into her chest with a wail.

"Natsu, I thought you said you'd be right back last night. You never came back and I woke up alone!" Natsu looked away with guilt. "I was so lonely!" Lucy stood up with happy and let him rest in her arms. She furrowed her brows at Natsu.

"Yeah Natsu, why'd you lie to him. You could of brought him with, I wouldn't have minded." To Lucy's surprise, she saw Natsu's cheeks darkened considerably. She looked at him in confusion and waited for him to answer her.

"I uh, didn't mean to just leave ya like that little buddy. I just wanted to be alone with...Lucy." He rubbed the back of his neck and laughed almost... sheepishly. Lucy was surprised. She would of never associated shy with Natsu, it just wasn't in his nature. She guessed there was a first time for everything.

"Oh is that so~" Happy said with a smirk. His mood changed quickly. Happy flew out of Lucy's grip and went up to Natsu with a hand covering his sly smile. Natsu looked up towards him and noticed this smile. He started to sweat, anticipating what the blue cat was going to say next.

"Yeah it is so."

"You liiiike her, don't you? Natsu wanted alone time with his Lucy-senpai. Oh Natsu, that's all you had to say. You didn't need to lie to me." Happy waved him off with a chuckle. Natsu gave him a look of absolute horror as he waved his hands in front of his face

"Ack! Hell no Happy! You're making up things!" Happy didn't give up his relentless teasing as they stepped into the guild. Natsu so desperately tried to shut up the flying cat as happy started to tease him louder, gaining attention from guild mates. They shrugged it off and went back to their business, figuring when it comes to Natsu, it isn't very concerning as he's always loud. Lucy pushed him towards a table and told him to say there while she picked a job. "Wait, why do you get to choose?" He asked her.

"Because you chose last time. It's my turn." Natsu clenched his fist in a pout but couldn't deny her words. He did choose last time. He watched closely as Lucy skipped her way up to the board and stood next to nab who was still looking for his own job. He greeted her to which she kindly greeted back. Natsu also watched as her face lit up when she saw what she liked. She tore the paper iff the board and skipped back to Natsu.

"Found one?" He asked rhetorically. She nodded anyway and handed him the job. Surprisingly, she chose one on the harder side. They were supposed to go search the woods in the outskirts of Hargeon for a ring that was supposedly guarded by a demon. It's said the ring would grant any wish you could possibly think of.

"Heh, the job says we get to keep the ring if we find it. Oh, we could wish for anything!" She gushed. Natsu looked at the job request and noticed that she was, indeed, correct. He grinned, thinking about all the endless possibilities for a wish. "We'd have to both agree on one thing though." Lucy said.

"Happy has to agree too!"

"Of course..." She smiled. Taking the paper from him, she ran up to Mira to get it checked off. Mira have her a smile and stamped the paper.

"Good luck on getting that ring! I hope your wish is something you truly want." Lucy gave her a weird look, but shrugged off her comment. Mira was always weird like that, putting in any hidden meanings into any conversation she could find.

"C'mon Natsu, Hargeon isn't too far from Magnolia so we can just walk if you like. We'd get there in about a day and a half. Natsu stood up and sighed in relief. He wasn't too excited for riding a train, but Lucy was always good to him so she wouldn't torture him so when it wasn't necessary to. Lucy grabbed happy on the way out and they left the guild. They were silent at first until Lucy piped up.

"I would of asked Erza and Gray along, but they took a job together about a day ago."

"They took a job together? Willingly?" Natsu asked her. She shrugged.

"Maybe because of that one time they went in a job alone together. Although, I heard from gray that he felt a chill the whole time there. That sounds awfully familiar, don't you think?" Natsu looked forward in deep thought, making Lucy sigh. "You don't know who I'm talking about do you?"

"Nope."

"I'm talking about juvia you dope. Anyway, I think it's pretty cute that Gray and Erza want to get closer. If I were gray, I would too. Having someone that gets jealous so easily, like juvia, around you can get a bit tiring. She even gets jealous at other men!" Lucy giggled. Natsu shuddered when remembering how juvia glared at him when he fought gray. She said he was only picking a fight with him because he liked him.

"Yeah, she's freaky."

"Oh yesh, she calls Lucy love rival." Happy giggled. Lucy sweat dropped and held two fingers to the bridge if her nose in irritation.

"She won't stop. I can't even look in Gray's direction without her glaring at me with those eyes!" She shivered while Natsu laughed at her. They turned into the woods to get there faster. They walked in comfortable silence, avoiding the fallen trees and branches as they walked. Happy made himself comfortable in Lucy's arrm while she walked behind Natsu.

"Hey Lucy? Are you okay, your breathing is getting heavier." He stopped and turned to see Lucy right in front of him. Lucy moaned and sat down on a tree trunk.

"Man, do you realize how fast you walk. I wish I was happy right now." Natsu smiled and shook his head.

"C'mon Luce, just a bit longer and we'll stop and make camp." His voice wws husky and quiet, getting Lucy to move in her own again. Lucy cursed to herself, stupid Natsu and his stupid sexy voice! Lucy stood up and followed Natsu's orders.

"Okay."

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 **This chapter was particularly hard. It was even harder to stay on track with the big idea of this chapter. I hope you still enjoyed this chapter though, I have an idea for the next chapter, but you'll just have to wait until then to see it.**


	3. His thoughts

**Hello! I'm back. I never really expected this story to get very far so I'm very glad that you guys are supporting this story and reviewing. I can speak for all writers and tell you that we appreciate it very much.**

 **Anyway, enjoy chapter three!**

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Gajeel had warned him that these stages weren't all going to be physical. He didn't think anything of it, but he should of saw it coming. But he acted ignorant like he always did so when these thoughts hit him, it felt like a damn truck. He just wanted to sleep, they had just set up camp out in the woods. Lucy had been tired from all the walking and complained until they settled down to sleep. Natsu was slightly annoyed at first, but it couldn't be helped. She wasn't too used to the walking like he was.

"Natsu, I think I hear a waterfall a ways down. I'm going to see if i can take a bath." Lucy dug through her bag and pulled out a towel, shampoo, and conditioner that she brought along with her. Natsu looked up from the fire he was currently trying to make and nodded at Lucy.

"Okay, just don't stay in too long or I'll have to come find you." Natsu said as he felt a smirk sneak it's way onto his lips. He watched as her cheeks became red and saw her fingers twitch.

"Shut up! I'll be back in twenty minutes or so so don't come looking for me!" She stomped away as he cackled at her embarrassment. He felt himself die down when Happy fell asleep. Getting the fire started, he leaned back on the log he was sitting on and went deep into thought. His mind made it's way to Lucy, making the dragon slayer blush. Usually his thoughts of the blonde were family friendly, him thinking about her eyes or her hair. Maybe wanting to hold her hand even.

But right now, they were all but friendly. Natsu held his head as more images came to his mind, where did all of this come from?! He was so glad that Happy was asleep because if he saw him like this, he wouldn't ever let the slayer live it down. He thought back to where Lucy went. She went to go take a bath. He growled, thinking of how water drops from the lake would be slowly drifting down her body, getting closer and closer to...

"Okay! That's enough for one day!" Natsu yelled as he stood up.

"What's enough for one day?" He heard a girly voice say from behind him. He visibly jumped and turned around to find Lucy in nothing but a towel, trying to dry her hair. She stepped forward slightly which made Natsu step back.

"L-Lucy, what are you doing here?"

"I told you I'd be back in twenty minutes or so," she walked forward some more and grabbed some clothing. "I forgot to grab some pajamas to the waterfall so I had to some all the way back here to grab some." He watched her silently as she stepped passed him. "I'm going to go change behind a tree somewhere. Promise I'll be back quick." He nodded and sat back down. He released a breath he didn't even know he was holding.

"Mavis, what the hell is happening to me?" He asked, desperate to know what was going on. If he was around Lucy any longer, he was sure he was going to do something he'd regret. Just the mere image of Lucy in nothing but a flimsy towel had him wanting to see more, _feel_ more. He told himself that one night that he wasn't ready, but he wasn't so sure anymore. Maybe he was?

"I'm back!" Lucy said. She came out from behind a far away tree, in a pair of short shorts and a tank top. Her outfit did little to stop his M-rated thoughts. He just quickly looked away from the blonde haired teen. She grabbed a sleeping bag and threw it to him while she set up her own on the ground. She grabbed Happy from his sleeping spot and pulled him to her. Natsu watched as she did all of this. "Night Natsu..." She said, finally

"N-Night." He said quietly. He turned away from her with a worried look in his eyes. _Just don't think about it, Just don't think about it, just don't think...Fuck!_

He knew he wasn't going to get any sleep tonight.

 _Morning_

Natsu grunted as he opened his eyes, the sunlight blinding him as he did so. He sat up and wiggled out of his sleeping bad, folding it up and placing it by Lucy's bag. He doused the fire out with water and started to stretch, feeling his muscles pull and become less stiff. He cracked his back and looked towards his partner, Lucy. She was still asleep, Happy snuggling into her chest. Natsu felt himself grow annoyed by the blue cat. _How come he gets to snuggle his head into her chest, unfair!_ Natsu thought to himself.

He then realized what he just thought and mentally slapped himself. How idiotic had he'd become in the last day. Sighing, he decided to wake both of them up. He crouched down on his knees and shook her awake. She groaned and tried to swat his arms away. "Go away." She said simply and turned around. He rolled his eyes and ripped her out of her sleeping bag, startling her. "Ah!" She looked tired, but stunned. She sat on her butt for minutes before standing and hitting Natsu on his chest.

"Ouch! What was that for?"

"For waking me up like that! Ya jerk!" She picked happy up and craddled him. He rubbed his eyes and slowly blinked them awake.

"Jeez Natsu...we're tired." Happy yawned. Natsu just scoffed and rolled up Lucy's sleeping bag and stuffed both his and hers in their bag. He threw Lucy some of her clothes.

"We gotta hurry, we have a job to do so get dressed." Lucy held her lips in a thin line, annoyed by him. She set down happy and hurred behind the same tree. It only took her five minutes, but she got dressed quickly. She wore one if her usual outfits, the one she wore during the key of the starry heavens ordeal. Natsu felt himself staring as she stocked up to him.

"Natsu!" She snapped her fingers in front of his face to capture his attention. He shook his head and travel his eyes up to her own. "You okay, you were staring." He felt himself blush at being caught and he turned away, apologizing. She frowned but didn't press the issue. They walked in silence for a few minutes before happy piped up.

"When we finish the mission, what're we going to wish for? I was thinking fish." Lucy scoffed.

"You always have fish in the mind. I was thinking we would just ask for money, so much that I wouldn't ever have to worry about rent again!"

"That's pretty greedy of you Lucy." Natsu laughed. Happy agreed and laughed at the blonde mage. She huffed and crossed her arms.

After for what seemed like hours, they made it to Hargeon. "Ah, there's the clearing!" Lucy pointed. She grabbed both Happy and Natsu and led them through the small patch of trees. They finally stepped down onto the road and Lucy smiled. "Ah, you guys! It's the same spot where we met. I can remember it like it was yesterday."

"Lucy's being weird again, Natsu." Natsu snickered when Lucy twisted her body around to tell his blue buddy to shut up.

"Hmph! You guys may not care but this is the spot where my life was changed forever. This is the spot where i met you two, my best friends in the whole wide world." He watched as her cheeks turned red at the memory, making his own flare. He gave Happy a sideways glance and saw that Happy gave him a look of slight guilt.

"Lucy! Of course we care. We wouldn't be anything without our favorite celestial mage. Now come on, let's go find our client." Natsu slung his arm around her and guided her to where their client was located. It was a large mansion on the outskirts of Hargeon. They climbed a steep hill to get there and once they made it to the top, they were stopped by guards.

"Halt and state your business!" One said formally, holding up a spear. Lucy stood up straight and placed her hand in front of her body so they wouldn't suspect they had any weapons on them.

"I am Lucy," she stated but then pointed to Natsu and Happy. "And these are my partners, Natsu and Happy. We came here to take the job that a client had sent to Fairy Tail." Both guards lowered their weapons and looked at each other.

"Alright, follow us." They followed the two men into the mansion. Both guards led them through several hallways before stopping to one particular room. The guards motioned the mages in and stood outside the door. All three of them walked in and found a small man sitting on what seemed to be a throne. Lucy raised her brow at this.

"So you're the mages that were sent to complete my request? Hm..." He was round, with white hair that was covered by a crown. His beard was long and curled toward the end. He wore an outfit that was one of a kings. He looked to be stuck up as he practically glared at Happy, probably disappointed that a cat was sent. Natsu held back the urge to glare at his client. Lucy stepped forward.

"Would you mind explaining more in depth about the job, we would like to know what you're asking of us exactly." The man's eyes widened upon gazing at Lucy. It was a look Natsu has seen of other despicable men. Natsu clenched his fist in anger. The man was staring at Lucy's chest, a chest that belonged to _him_.

"Ah, yes. Excuse me miss, would you like to come closer so that I could tell you?"

"That won't be necessary. I have pretty good hearing and I'll hear you just fine from here." Natsu said slowly, getting in front of Lucy. The man glared at Natsu and stood, he only looked to be five feet.

"Do you know who I am, young man?"

"Don't care."

"I am Count Hargeon. This town was named after my family, I am the last known Hargeon." Natsu felt his eye twitch in irritation. He then felt a hand being placed on shoulder.

"Natsu, don't cost us this job." Lucy whispered. She stepped in front of him and bowed to the count. "I'm sorry about my team mate. He's not being himself. Please pay no mind to him." She didn't notice how the short man stared into her cleavage. Natsu felt himself burn in anger. Lucy belonged to him and no one was to look at her. She was _his_! The man cleared his throat and nodded.

"An outburst like his could cost you the ring, but maybe there's a way I can forgive you..." That's when Lucy stood up and stepped back when she felt a hand on her backside. She squeaked and ran behind Natsu.

"U-Uh, we have enough information for the job. Thank you and we'll see you again when we finish. H-Have a good day, sir." Lucy, Natsu and Happy fled the mansion in hurry. Lucy's face was still beet red as they left the property. "N-Natsu?" Natsu grunted, still angry about what happened.

"Yeah Luce?"

"I'm sorry I stopped you before. Shoukd of let you beat the shit out of him." He gave her a sideways glance and instinctively pulled her closer.

"I would of if we weren't on a job and he wasn't the client. Maybe once we finish I'll kill him." She gazed up at him in worry and saw that Natsu was bearing his sharp canines. She put a hand on his chest.

"You okay?" He looked back down at her. He felt a possessive streak run through his veins. His eyes narrowed into slits, like a dragon. He always knew how to keep his animalistic side at bay, but recently it's been getting harder and harder for him to do.

"Nothing, I'm just angry that he touched something that was _mine_." Lucy searched his face for any sign that he was kidding. That he was going to smile and tell her he was just pulling her leg. But he didn't...he was completely serious. Even happy looked shocked by what came out of the fire dragon slayer's mouth. Lucy felt herself short circuit for a moment.

He said that she was his.

That she was his.

His.

Lucy exploded with a blush and hid herself in his vest, confusing him. He heard her heartbeat speed up and he could feel the heat that radiated off her skin. He looked at Happy and watched as Happy snickered towards the blonde. He started to tease her which made the situation worse. She swiped at the cat and yelled at him. That's when they heard rustling just up ahead.

They froze, Lucy stepped away from him and grabbed a key from her pouch. It was Cancer. Out came the demon they were sent to defeat. He was some sort of pig demon with barbaric like clothing and he was wielding a simple axe. He looked like something straight out of a video game. Natsu and Lucy didn't care to question it as they saw the ring squeezed on his ring index finger. He snorted and swung up his axe. Lucy quickly put away Cancer and took out Taurus.

"Open, gate of the golden bull: Taurus!" Taurus poofed out of the celestial realm, and made a perverted comment at Lucy. Lucy rolled her eyes and took out her whip. "C'mon Taurus, let's take this piggy." He mooed and ran towards the demon. Natsu ran right after him. Taurus had swung his axe, but the demon deflected it with his own. Since Taurus was keeping him busy, it gave Natsu a chance to attack.

"Fire Dragon: Iron fist!" He punched the pig right across the face, throwing him off guard. The demon stepped back with a squeal. Lucy grabbed her whip and grabbed the demon by his throat, making him squeal longer. She pulled on the her whip and let him go, making him spin out of control. Thus making him incredibly dizzy. Natsu smirked and had happy lift him up in the sky. He sucked in his breath. "Fire Dragon: Roar!" The demon made a sound of agony as he burned under Natsu's hot flames. Once the fire died down, the demon just fainted. Lucy sent Taurus back and put away her whip.

"That was surprisingly easy." Lucy said happily. She searched the pig demon and found the ring, slipping it off his finger. Natsu hauled the demon on his back. The count said, before they ran out of the mansion, that he wanted to keep the demon for reasons unknown. Natsu and Lucy started to walk back up the hill to the mansion, but his thoughts drifted towards his blonde mage.

When he wasn't fighting, he was too busy gawking at her fight. For some reason, the thought of her fighting that demon was...hot. He didn't exactly know how to describe it, but it turned this sort of switch on in him, making him stare at her in awe. Did he have some sort if weird kink? He liked watching women dominant? Nah, he only felt that way towards Lucy. The mere thought of Erza or Mira fight sent chills down his back, and they were not from pleasure. The kind of chills that ran down his back when Lucy fought were ones of excitement. Like how she used her whip. He wondered what else she would use that whip for... _and there i go again, being a fucking creep,_ he thought to himself.

"Hey Lucy?" He caught up to her when he realized he was trailing behind.

"Yes?"

"We should spar sometime." He expected her to either glare at him or call him crazy and that he would kill her, but all she did was give him a look of determination. Pumping her fist, she grinned.

"Hell yeah we should. I've gotten stronger and I was looking for a guinea pig to try out some new spells i learned." He gave her a look of surprise.

"You learned new spells?" Her grin turned into a soft smile and she nodded.

"Yup, not only have I learned star dress over your one year away," he flinched when he heard some venom laced within her voice. "I've also learned some new spells. Of course I'm not going to tell you until we actually spar, but I bet you'll be excited." He froze mildly for a second.

Excited...yeah. He knew she meant something totally different, but he couldn't help but think of something entirely different with the word. Yeah, he'll be excited all right...in more ways than one. He just hopes she doesn't notice. He's been pretty good at hiding his off thoughts so far, but Lucy was a bit innocent and an air head at times. He smiled fondly, thinking of her again. They finally crawled their way back up the hill and we're let in quickly. Natsu, Lucy, and Happy were about to step in the door that led to the count when Natsu grabbed her wrist and pulled her back.

"No." He said, his voice low and husky. His voice demanding.

"Natsu, the hell? Let me go!" She struggled in his grip and used her other arm to try and get him to let go. He only held on tighter, but not so tight he'd hurt her.

"I refeuse to let you go in there again and get assaulted. Remember what I said before. You. Are. Mine. Nobody can touch you." Lucy paused as her face went as pink as his hair. He felt himself swell in pride, happy he could make her blush with one sentence.

"I'm not waiting out here because I agree with you. One, I don't want to get harassed again and two, I'm just going to humor you." She crossed her arms with a puff of her cheeks. His stern look transformed into a softer one. Patting her head, he turned to happy and told him to stay with Lucy. He wanted to deal with this asshole alone.

"Aye sir..." Happy gave him a worried look, but followed his orders. Natsu readjusted the demon on his shoulder and kicked open the door, probably startling count Hargeon. Natsu walked in and glared at the man. He ungracefully dropped the demon on the tiled floor, dirtying it.

"Hm, you...where's that cat and the beautiful maiden?" Natsu growled possessively.

"That "beautiful maiden" is mine. So don't refer to her in such a way." Count Hargeon scoffed and stood. He was a foot shorter than Natsu, but he sure did talk like he was taller. Natsu could literally drop kick his ass. He chuckled at the thought.

"Yours, you say? Are you two an item?" Natsu felt himself go red.

"No, but that doesn't matter to me because sooner or later we will be. Us not being and "item" isn't going to stop me from beating up men trying to perv on her." Natsu felt half of his body go up in flames in anger and in an attempt to intimidate the shorter male.

"You're going to scare her away and when you do, she'll come running to me because she knows I'm not a ruffian like yourself."

 _Snap._

Natsu used a flaming fist to punch the count so far, he slammed up against the wall. "Hear me and hear me good," Natsu paused, giving the man a moment to focus his attention on him. "She is mine and will always be mine. She would never run to someone like you who would take advantage of her body, the body that belongs to me. If you ever try to get in contact with her again, I, Natsu Dragneel of Fairy tail, will hunt you down. You'll see what a real fight is like."

"You can't do this, it's unethical!" Natsu ignored him and walked back to the doorway.

"And we're taking the ring." He opened and slammed the door shut once he made his way through. Lucy and Happy shared a look of confusion and followed Natsu. He stomped his way down the hill. He was so pissed, he didn't realize he got three tickets for the train. Lucy and Happy followed him on watched as his angry demeanor changed instantly to one that was sickly. Lucy felt herself giggle at his silliness.

"Mavis, you're a freak..." Her voice held no anger or resentment though. Only held tenderness and fondness for the pink headed mage. The took their seat and Natsu immediately laid his head on her lap. It was a habit sorts now. That's what they always did when they boarded a train. Instead if Erza knocking him out, Lucy just ran her fingers through his hair until he eventually was lulled to sleep.

"Natsu, what happened in there?" Happy asked him, perching on Lucy's shoulder. Natsu opened his mouth but slapped a hand over it when he was about to barf. He swallowed his vomit and tried to answer the question.

"I told him...to ba-ack off...on Lucy...the nerve of that g-guy." Lucy giggled quietly and dug her fingers in his hair, making him realise a moan of pleasure, one he didn't want to realise. They felt as if time froze, shocked at what came out of Natsu's mouth. He instantly went bright red and moaned, but this time out of embarrassment. Lucy felt the need to hear his first moan again, but she ignored that desire. Instead, she just smirked mischievously.

"Oh, did that feel good hmm? What? Am I..." She leaned down slightly and whispered in his ear. "Turning you on." _Now the tables have turned, Natsu. I'm getting the most out of this for as long as I can,_ she thought with a grin. He suddenly went shy and turned inward, digging his face into her stomach in a futile attempt to hide his blush. She supposed she wasn't as mean as him, since she felt a bit bad for embarrassing him. She just pat his head and tried to change the subject. "Me and Happy heard a lot of noises in that room, you didn't do anything to the guy did you?" Suddenly, Natsu's face twisted into one of irritation. His blush almost subsided.

"He was talking bullshit about how once you ran away from me that you would go him because he wasn't a rufus."

"A what? Rufus?" She paused for a moment before smacking her forehead. "You mean ruffian?"

"Yeah...that!" He gagged. "Anyway, I told him to never get in contact with you and that you're mine."

"Oooo, he liiiiiikes her!"

"Jeez Natsu, don't say that so casually."

"I shouldn't have to say it at all, it should be common knowledge by now."

"According to who?!"

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 **Ha, sorry it took two days to get this one out. I was super sidetracked yesterday and by the time I was ready to finish it, it was like 12pm. Anyways, I really hoped you enjoyed. I know I enjoyed writing this chapter in particular. I have no idea what I'm going to do for chapter four but I'm sure I'll come up with something.**


	4. His Protectiveness

**Hey I'm back, I'll have one more chapter after this one as I said I would. There are only five stages, so of course only five chapters. That's all I have to say so let's just get started with chapter four.**

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Natsu, Lucy, and Happy made it back home safe in Magnolia. They decided to go show the guild the ring and get Levy to analyze it. It was to make sure that the ring wouldn't some how curse them or pull any tricks when they made their wish. Natsu grinned broadly and kicked open the door, pushing a few member away as he did.

"We're back!" He roared throughout the guild.

"Nobody cares, flame brain!" Gray growled as he rubbed his head. He was one of the members were pushed by Natsu when he barged in the guild. Natsu cackled and decided to start a fight with the ice make mage. Lucy rolled her eyes and zigged zagged through the tables and members as she saw Levy reading a book next to Gajeel. He had his head down in the table, with his head in his arms.

"Levy-chan!" Lucy yelled. Her yell caught Natsu's attention. He stopped his fight for split second to look at his partner. He had to make sure she was safe from harm. _But she's not in any danger,_ a voice said to Natsu. Natsu furrowed his brows. When had he became so protective of Lucy, almost to the point he was possessive of her. Scratch that, he always was towards the mage but that feeling had grown.

"Getting distracted from your opponent is unmanly!" Eflman hollered as he punched Natsu In the face. Natsu felt himself getting pushed down. He hopped back on his feet and started to fight them again, but made a quick glance at Lucy every so often. He was looking out for a friend, he convinced himself.

"Lu-chan! What's up- what is that?" She interrupted herself as Lucy got closer with a ring in her hand. The ring had a burgundy stone placed, but the actual ring was silver with an unrecognizable language carved in to the sides of the ring. If anyone could figure out what those words said, it was Levy.

"I need your help, Levy-chan. Can you please read these words on this ring and tell me what it says. I want to make sure this ring isn't cursed or anything." Levy nodded and took it from her and studied it.

"Is this the ring that grants any wish?" Lucy shook her head yes and watched as Levy looked over the ring with a critical eye. She then stopped over the words carved into the ring. She nodded and took out a piece of paper that was in her own bag. Grabbing the pencil that was conveniently stuck behind her ear, she started to translate the ring's words. "Wow, this is so cool!" She gushed. Once she was finished she read over what she wrote on the paper and nodded in satisfaction.

"What does it say?" Levy cleared her throat and started to read the translation.

"To sum it up, it says that you can grant any wish without any consequences. So you, Happy, and Natsu are free to wish anything you want. Just be extra clear, but i wouldn't worry Lu-chan. I can't even sense any bad energy from the ring." Lucy laughed excitedly and swipped the ring from Levy.

"Thanks a billion, Levy-chan!" She ran off to Natsu, Levy watching her with a small smile. "Natsu Natsu! Come here!" Natsu stopped his fighting immediately and made his way over to Lucy. Gray looked at him in awe but didn't say a word. Natsu took a seat with Lucy while she called over Happy.

"What's up, Luce?"

"Well, I asked Levy-chan and she says that the wish will not come with consequences. So, what shall we wish for?" Natsu placed a finger on his chin in thought. Happy was about to say something when Lucy stopped him.

"Not fish." Happy let a frown adorn his face and he pouted.

"Well what do you suggest then?" Happy frowned. Lucy opened her mouth with a smile and this time, Happy was the one interrupting her. "That's not money." She shut her mouth quickly and looked away with a small blush, embarrassed he figured out so quick.

"What then? Natsu?" Lucy turned to the dragon slayer. He just gave her a shrug. Lucy sighed and looked down at the ring, studying it. They could literally wish for anything and they can't think of one thing they agree on. Lucy then smiled.

"I think I already have everything I wished for. I came to Fairy Tail, met and befriended the great salamander, made friends, made up with my father, and i have a place of my own. What more could i ask for?" Lucy giggled and leaned her head on Natsu's shoulder. Natsu then realized what she said.

"You wanted to meet and become friends with me? Even before you met me?" He asked her. He was sure his face was red, but he chose to ignore that.

"Oh yeah, you were so popular and one of the mages I studied for years. It's funny, I wanted to be just like you. Even my dad was impressed by your overwhelming skill, he talked about you quite a lot. I wanted to become your friend so bad and when we finally met, I was overwhelmed with happiness." She smiled brightly and looked into his eyes the whole time, absolutely serious. He made a nervous laugh and turned away, ruffling his hair.

"That's a bit surprising." _Dammit, my voice sounded even higher than my old voice. Why did she have to say that?_ He thought to himself in embarrassment.

"So I don't need anything from this ring, you and Happy can wish."

"I don't want anything either, it's all yours little buddy." Natsu smiled nervously. Happy's eyes sparkled with joy as Lucy passed him the ring. Happy drooled and thought about what he wanted before sighing happily.

"I wish for a big yummy fishy!" Lucy and Natsu watched the ring disappear suddenly and a huge shark appear in thin air. It smashed down on the table, breaking it. The worst part, it wasn't dead.

"Kya! Dammit, I should of told happy to be clear!" She jumped away from the fish when it tried to bite her feet. Natsu grabbed Lucy by the wrist and pulled her away roughly. He grabbed the shark by the fin and lit it on fire, killing it. He tossed it to Happy.

"Here ya go, buddy. Your own cooked fish!" Happy laughed and thanked Natsu brightly. He started to dig into the shark with a smile. Lucy shuddered in disgust, but was pulled by Natsu again. She tripped back and landed into his chest. With a grunt, she looked straight up at Natsu.

"Be careful next time Lucy. You could of been hurt." He whispered. She looked away from him and nodded. He made sure to not let go of her as he guided them back to their seat and now broken table. He sat her down incredibly close to him so that he could watch over her.

"Na-Natsu?"

"Hm?"

"Do you- uh, do want to go sp-spar now? I could show you what new spells I learned with my spirits." Natsu nodded silently and they got up. They were about to walk out of the guild when Natsu turned around and yelled out to happy.

"We're gonna leave Happy!"

"Go on without me, I'm still eating!" He said as he stuffed his face. Natsu shrugged and took Lucy's hand and led her out of the guild.

"Well that's just great..." Gajeel yawned, finally waking up from his nap. Levy gave him a confused glace and asked him what he meant. "The fourth stage is one of the worst. If you thought he was protective of bunny girl before, you're in for a real treat now. With his possessiveness added into the pot, he probably won't let anyone but the blue cat and himself touch her. What a drag..." Gajeel grunted.

"Oh, poor Lu-chan. It'll be hard to deal with someone like that. I remember how you were when you went through the fourth stage. I almost wanted to strangle you at times. It's weird how fast Natsu went through all of these stages." Levy sighed.

"Yeah, well, he was late. It's probably his body trying to catch up with his age." Levy shook her head in agreement.

"Yeah, you're probably right."

Natsu had ran into the woods, Lucy trailing behind him.

"Where are we going?" Lucy asked him. He had told her that he knew of a place that they could spar where they wouldn't be disturbed or manage to destroy anything but trees.

"You'll know when we get- oh, we're here." Lucy looked at the scenery around her. She then noticed a small house far in the distance.

"Is that your house?" She asked him.

"Yeah, we're practically out in the middle of nowhere. We won't be able to destroy anything and we won't be distracted." Lucy smiled and nodded. She then felt a smirk crawl it's way onto her lips.

"Ready?" Natsu chuckled at her excited expression.

"Ready." Lucy then took out two keys. It was Leo and Aries.

"Open, gate of the lion and the ram, Leo! Aries!" They both poofed out and looked at each other. They already seemed to know. Leo and Aries stood back to back and grabbed each other's hand. They closed their eyes and with a bright light, there stood both of them, but they looked like they fused together. It looked more like Aries than loke, but her hair was orange and she wore glasses. Her eye shape was more loke as well as her outfit being loke's. Except that the outfit's sleeves had fluffy wool sticking out of them.

"Wool bomb brilliance!" They shouted as a bright white light surrounded the entire field. Lucy closed her eyes on instinct, but smiled. When the light diminished, Natsu was engulfed in pink fluffy wool, temporarily blinded.

"What the, Lucy! What did you do? I can't see a thing!" Lucy didn't say a word as she transformed into her Leo star dress.

"Regulas," she yelled as she ran towards him. "Lucy kick!" She kicked him straight in the stomach, knocking him out of the wool and on the hard ground. He heard Lucy start to talk. "Thanks Loke, Aries."

"No problem princess." He heard a voice say, no doubt it was Loke.

"I'm sorry!" That was obviously Aries. They disappeared, only leaving Lucy and Natsu. He heard Lucy walk towards him, he could practically hear her smirk.

"You good Natsu? You were surprised weren't you? I can combine any two spirits I wish. They combine their attacks which makes them an even bigger and more powerful attack. It took four months to learn that move so I'm happy it worked on someone as powerful as you." Natsu groaned and rubbed his eyes. His vision was starting to come back.

"For your information, I was just caught off guard." Once he was able to make out her figure, he lit his hand on fire. "Now...it's my turn." Lucy gave him a hardened look and called out Scorpio.

"Open, gate of the scorpian, Scorpio!"

"Wicked! Is it time Lucy?" She nodded and transformed into her star dress, sand starting to gather around her. She stood in front of Scorpio and allowed him to use sand buster. Her dress allowed her to manipulate sand to lift her up into Scorpio's attack and she twisted her body like a torpido.

"Fire dragon: Roar!" His fire came right at her and Scorpio's and Natsu's attack mashed together, creating a tunnel of magic. She spun right through it into natsu and threw up her fist to punch him. This time, Natsu was prepared and he dodged her fist. Scorpio disappeared back into the celestial world behind their own fight. They started to dismiss their magic and sparred without it.

 _Right. Left. Right. Left._ Lucy thought to herself as she threw her fist at Natsu. Unfortunately for her, he dodged her every punch and even caught her right hand. She gazed into his eyes in shock and watched as he smirked.

"Did i catch you off guard." She growled and tried to punch with her left fist, but he caught that too. She grunted and was about to kick his legs, making him fall, but he figured her moves and leaned his weight on her, knocking her over. He placed both of his hands on the other side of her head and positioned a knee between her legs, so that she couldn't kick him. She breathed heavily and pushed on his chest.

"Lemme up." She sucked in a breath and glared at the dragon slayer on top of her. He was also breathing heavy and trying to catch his own breath. He looked down at her face and gave her a smirk she'd probably never forget. It stirred something inside her, making her blush.

"You've improved a lot over a year, but so have I. You'll need a lot more combat training to be able to catch up to me." She crossed her arms and pouted. He smiled fondly at his blonde mage. "Your magic has gotten so stronger too, you're probably stronger than most guild mates so don't feel bad. You'll probably be running for S-Class like me this year. Just so ya know, I won't be going easy on you."

She dropped her arms and looked up at him with a smile of determination. "Yeah I know, I won't either. So be prepared because those weren't even my most powerful spells, I just didn't want to seriously hurt you." He laughed egotistically.

"You wish!" He finally got up off of her and laid back on the grass. "I know that you've gotten stronger and all, but you're still mine to protect you know. If I don't want you to fight an opponent, then you won't." She blinked a few times before scoffing at him.

"You can't control me, I can fight whoever I want to!" He stood up and loomed over the blonde, making her stand as well. She knew he was trying to intimidate her, and sadly it was working. She tried to look unfazed by the whole thing, but his height over her made her knees turn to jelly.

"You may not like it, but that doesn't change anything. I'm not letting you fight some perv or someone that could catch you off guard and hurt you. I'll say it one more time, If I don't want you to fight an opponent, then you won't." His voice was deep, but he made it deeper to put his point across. She crossed her arms. _Despite how angry I am towards him, he only wants to protect me so I shouldn't be too mad, he was the first person in years that was so protective of me. But why? Does he think I'm weak or incompetent? No, he just said a second ago that I was probably stronger than most guild members in Fairy Tail. But then why does he want to protect me if he knows I can take care of myself?_

"Fine...not to say I agree with you or anything, but just tell me why you want to protect me when you know i'm capable myself?" Lucy sighed.

Natsu's felt his face heat up and he suddenly went a little shy. He looked away with an emotion Lucy couldn't place. Both of them were shocked by his embarrassment while Natsu cleared his throat in a quiet manner. "Well, it's because...be- because..."

"Because...why?" She made a motion with her hand, signalling him to continue.

"Because you're like my nakama, I protect them all." Lucy suddenly felt herself smirk, feeling like teasing the dragon a little.

"But would you tell another nakama not to fight an enemy. Or would you tell someone like gray that he belongs to you?" Natsu looked at her with wide eyes and started to choke on his own spit.

"Hell no! I would never call that pervy popsicle mine! That is disgusting!" Lucy felt herself giggle softly, but then get louder to a full on laugh. He was just so easy to get riled up! He brooded and crossed his arms.

"Oh I'm just messing with you. Calm down." She snickered and pat his back. She then got serious. "But really Natsu, I get that being a dragon slayer can make you possessive or protective, levy told me that, but I just wanna know why you chose me? How the hell am I so important?" Natsu furrowed his eyebrows and got grabbed her shoulders.

"Listen to me, _I_ brought you to the guild. _I_ became your partner. And _I_ was the one to always catch you when you fall. Only I can do those things because you are important to me. I'm not really sure why, maybe because you're so weird or that you taught me about real strength, but you became just as important as Happy and as...igneel." Lucy gasped softly and watched as he became nervous and he began to figit in his spot.

"Thank you Natsu. I'm glad you think so and I'm happy to have you protect me. But you gotta realize that I like to defend our guild and if you ever were in need of help, i'd help you without a second thought. You're important to me too Natsu." She saw a small twinkle in his eye as he smiled widely. She took his hands off her shoulders and pat her head softly.

"Glad we're on the same page...sorta. We can figure it out later." She nodded and smiled back at him.

"So, ready to go at it again?" Ignoring the way excitement sparked inside when he heard how wrong her sentence sounded, he grinned and held out a hand and made a 'come at me' motion.

"Come and get me."

...

They opened the guild doors tiredly. It was around 4pm, they were sparring since 11am, so of course they had to be exhausted. They looked at the skeleton on the guild floor, it was one of a fish. They figured Happy must have finished his fish. They trudged their way to the bar and sat down on the seats. Lucy slammed her head on the counter and asked Mira for water. Natsu groaned in agreement to get him some water as well.

"My my, what got you two so beaten up and tired. Lucy, you look like a truck ran over you. And Natsu, a black eye is staring to form." Lucy moaned as she felt a head ache start making it's way to the back of her head. She rubbed it, trying to make it feel better.

"We were sparring. Natsu beat my ass."

"Yeah, Lucy beat the crap outta me. I could sleep right here." They swiped their waters from Mira and drank it aggressively. They asked for more.

"Woah ho ho, Lucy! You and Natsu were getting it on eh? Your hair is so messy and is that a hickey? You two really were getting frisky." Cana had teased, taking a gulp from her beer bottle. Lucy squeaked and went pink.

"N-No! We were sparring and this," she pointed to the bruise on her chest. "Isn't a hickey. Stupid Natsu had dug his knuckle into my chest while he punched me. It still hurts." She flared at Natsu, which made him scratch the back of his head in nervousness. Cana gave them a look of disappointment.

"Aw, you guys are no fun. I really thought you guys did it too..." Lucy rolled her eyes and drank the rest of her third glass of water.

"You're a freak, Cana. Why can't you act sober for once?" Lucy huffed. Cana only cackled and pat Lucy on the back in a forceful manner. Lucy jerked forward every time she made contact with her back, it annoyed her. In the background, a fight started to break out as Gray had stepped on a nail, making him yell out at Gajeel.

"Hey bolt breath, care to pay for my tetanus shot?! I stepped on your damn breakfast!" Gajeel only glared at Gray and puffed.

"Oh yeah, how about you watch where you're going and not ruin my breakfast with your disgusting feet!" That was when Gray and Gajeel started to brawl, knocking into Elfman.

"So unmanly!"

"Shut up!" They both said simultaneously as they punched Elfman in the face. Then they started to fight each other again. This led to half of the guild fighting with several pieces of furniture flying everywhere. A chair had been randomly thrown off, but in the direction of everyone's favorite celestial mage. She paid no mind as she had a conversation with Lisanna, Mira, and Cana. Natsu was the only one who sensed it.

"Lucy, look out!" Natsu said as he got behind Lucy and hugged her body to his, letting the chair break on his back. Since the chair was wooden, it didn't hurt too bad, but it was enough to probably bruise his back. Lucy tensed as the guild went silent.

"Natsu, what happened? Are you okay?" Lucy asked with wide eyes. Natsu unwrapped himself around her and sat next to her again, he touched his back in pain. She gasped at the broken chair laying behind her. "Mavis! Natsu did you protect me from that chair?" He nodded and winced in pain as he touched his back again.

"Yeah, you didn't notice it so I had to protect ya." Lucy frowned.

"Don't touch it, idiot! Wendy!" She yelled throughout the guild. Wendy looked up from her meal and ran towards Natsu in a hurry. She had overheard their conversation and went straight to work with healing his back. Natsu's hurt face relaxed a bit. He was starting to feel better. It was a minutes work and Wendy squeaked when Lucy had thanked her.

"No problem. Natsu, it'll be fine in a few hours. Just don't touch it or it'll keep bruising." Natsu smiled and nodded. Lucy rubbed her temples.

"What am I going to do with you?"

"You can thank me. That'll be a start." She furrowed her brows, but smiled anyway.

"Yeah yeah, thanks you pyro. I'm lucky you were there to protect me or that damn chair would of hit the back of my head. I could of gotten a damn concussion. Now," Lucy said as she cracked her knuckles. The whole guild froze in fear as she glared at the party that was fighting. They only ever saw that look in Erza. "Who the _fuck_ threw that chair?" Everyone that was fighting skid away, knowing it wasn't them. That only left one person. Gray. His face held fear in his eye as he automatically held a hand up to his face in protection.

"L-Lucy, let's talk about this...it w-was an accident." She stocked towards him slowly and grabbed his head.

"Aren't they always?"

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 **And there is chapter four. I especially enjoyed writing Lucy spar with Natsu. It was fun coming up with attacks for her to try out. Next chapter will be the last, but I hope it's the best. Again, not sure what the stage will be, but I'll be sure to make it interesting.**

 **I'll see you last chapter!**


	5. His feelings

**Ladt chapter! To be honest, I've had a lot of fun writing this and im happy you all are enjoying it too.**

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Natsu didn't think it was possible for him to feel this way. He was always so neutral when it came to women. He's never fallen in love with somebody before. He should of realized a year ago, when he started to feel different around her, but he ignored it because he wasn't exactly ready. Plus, they were always in some sort of deadly situation, he wasn't exactly thinking about wanting to get together with anyone at the time.

He groaned and took a sip of his fire whiskey. He only realized all of this around a week ago, but it still hit him hard every time he thought about it. Along with this realization, he's been getting this urge. This feeling. _He wants Lucy. He wants her now._ Just looking at her gave him this urge. He told himself that with everything that happens, he wasn't ready for such things like a relationship. But now, he couldn't stop thinking about it.

He loved her and he wanted to be with her. He also told himself that he knew Lucy's feeling for him, but with these feelings came his insecurities. _Did she like him back or did she just get embarrassed easily? Was she just messing around with him? Did she liked someone else like gray or loke?_ He growled at the thought. He didn't like thinking about Lucy with another man, especially someone like Gray or loke.

"Hey Natsu!" He heard a voice say from behind him. Despite his annoyance, he smiled when he turned around. Lucy could always get him to smile. She ran up to him and sat down next to him. After calling over Mira for a drink, she turned to him with a bright smile. "Aren't you excited for the cherry blossoms festival?" He shrugged.

"I've seen it a hundred times before." Her smile disappeared momentarily as she gave him a pout. She crossed her arms.

"Well, the last time I was there to see it I got sick so I'm excited," she then giggled. "Ya know, I already thanked you before but I wanna say it again. Thank you for floating that tree down the river, it was so thoughtful of you and Happy to do." He looked at her with mild surprise before looking away from her shy face.

"I never said we were the ones that did anything."

"Oh Natsu, it's been years since then. You don't have to hide it," She paused and got a good look of his expression. "Or...are you shy about it. Aw! That's so cute of you!" He choked on his drink and wipped his face with an embarrassed scowl. If she keeps this up, she's bound to find out about his feelings. As much as he wants her to know, rejection isn't something he wants to experience.

"A-As if! The only reason we sent that tree down the river was because you would of whined about it the next day." She placed her hands on her hips and smiled as she rolled her eyes.

"Say what you want, but I know the truth."

"Tch, whatever." Natsu tilted his head up and drank the rest of his fire whiskey, Lucy watching his every move. He gave her a sideways glance and raised his brow at her. She squeaked and looked away. "You okay, Lucy?"

"I just...wanted to ask you a question." She squirmed uncomfortably under his gaze and shifted slighting towards him. She was wringing her hands, but when she saw he noticed, she placed him between her thighs to stop her from moving them around. She looked truly nervous.

"Ask away." He patiently waited for her to muster up the courage to ask him whatever she wanted to. She opened her mouth a few times as if she was going to say something, but stopped herself. He felt himself start to get nervous as well, trying to anticipate what could of gotten the blonde so nervous.

"I uh, wanted to ask you if you w-wanted to...um- to spend the festival with me? Like just us two." She leaned forward slightly so that her hair hid the side of her face. He could still tell that her cheeks were bright red. He felt his stomach grow restless as his ears burned. She looked completely serious. "I mean if you want we can take happy, but I thought if it was us two, then it would kinda be like a da-"

"Sure, we can do that if you want." She looked up in shock.

"R-Really? Just the two of us then?" He swallowed thickly and felt himself figit. Her look gave him that urge again, he had to physically hold himself back by digging his nails into his arm. If she gave him that look one more time, he wasn't sure he would be able hold it all in.

"Y-Yeah. It'll be fun." She stood up and hugged his arm, kissing his cheek when she knew nobody was watching. He gripped the table as he felt himself go red. When she looked back at him, she smiled shyly.

"Pick me up at five okay?" She giggled quietly and ran out of the guild. After realizing what he just agreed to, he ran his fingers through his hair. _I don't know the first thing about dates. What am I supposed to do?_ He then felt himself brighten. He could ask for a little bit of help.

"I heard the whole thing, salamander. I think you could use some help." Gajeel said as he came over to Natsu. Natsu glared at Gajeel's egotistical smirk.

"I don't want any help from someone like you, metal head."

"I don't think you have much of a choice. I honestly didn't even want to help you, but Levy saw what bunny girl did and insisted that we both help you." Natsu felt his eye twitch. Not only did he have to deal with Gajeel, Levy was going to help. It's not like he didn't like or trust Levy, but she could be such a perfectionist. This could get ugly quick. He hated ti admit it, but Gajeel did have a point. He doesn't have much of a choice.

"Fine, whatever." Gajeel grunted and pushed Natsu towards Gajeel and Levy's table. He forcefully sat him down across from himself and Levy. Levy bounced with excitement and grabbed one if Natsu's hands.

"I'll help you with Lucy. Just count on me!" Natsu laughed awkwardly. He was starting to think that this was a huge mistake. "First," her voice pulled him out of his inner turmoil. "You need to act the part."

"Yeah? I was just thinking of being myself ya know-"

"No! Be the exact opposite. You must be polite and considerate on a date. Lucy wants to see the romantic side of you, not your... unromantic side." He growned in irritation. "Let's go outside, we won't have people breathing down our neck." She shuddered as the guild tried to listen in. Gajeel's glare had them turn away quickly. All three of them stood up and left the guild, going behind it onto an open field.

"Jeez salamander, you suck at this." Gajeel chuckled as Natsu tried to act romantic towards Levy, imagining Lucy.

"Shut up, idiot! I'm not used to this!" Natsu screamed. He was already frustrated with all this and Gajeel wasn't making it any better.

"From the top, Natsu!"

"Okay, jeez!" Natsu released a sigh. "S-So Lucy, you like the festival so far. The trees are...nice."

"Booooo!"

"Gajeel, you prick! I'm doing my best!" Levy groaned and rubbed her temples. She then took a seat on the grass and started to think.

"Okay, this obviously isn't working. Natsu, just imagine having a normal conversation with Lucy. Don't act so awkward, but don't be completely friend like or normal. You have to show her that your feelings are more than ones of a friends." Levy encouraged.

"This is too complicated! Why can't I just pick her up and we walk around the festival and then we sit down under the sakura trees. Why do I have to act all romantic when she already knows how I feel about her."

"She obviously doesn't know about your feeling towards her. You and i both know that Lucy can act a little...air headed at times. And you have to act romantic because you're going on a romantic date! You'd be an asshole if you treated her completely platonic." Levy sighed in frustration. Natsu shifted uncomfortably and just sat down across from her.

"I just don't want to ruin the night by being too romantic or too awkward and scare her off." Natsu confessed. He was scared that he wouldn't be good enough for the blonde mage. He looked up from the ground when Gajeel laughed obnoxiously.

"Trust me Natsu, she'd never run away from you. For some reason, she likes you. Even though you aren't good enough for her." Natsu frowned at stood up to get in Gajeel's face, he was allowed that privilege when he got taller.

"Oh yeah? And what are you, her dad?"

"No, but she's like a sister to me so if you ever make her cry..." Gajeel trailed off dangerously. Gajeel loved Lucy like she was his own flesh and blood. He wouldn't let some idiot that was denser than a rock break her heart. Lucy had always been kind to him, even when he beat her up as a member of Phantom Lord. He wasn't proud of those days, but that's how he met Lucy and he was glad he did. She really meant a lot to him.

"Enough you too! C'mon Natsu, let's try again. Like i said before. Act as if I'm Lucy, but just be a little more formal. You don't have to act completely out of character, just don't act as if manners is a foreign act for you."

"Yeah yeah..."

...

"Now you gotta look the part! You have an hour to get ready!" Levy said as she looked at the clock. It read 4:03. Levy had taken them to a fancy store, picking out a tux. She held it up to Natsu's figure, trying to figure out which one would fit and look good on him.

"Mavis, Natsu! You're so wide and bulky, how are we gonna find anything that fits you?" Natsu just shurgged at the short mage. She put the tux she was holding back and found a bigger one. She gabbed the side of the shirt and held it to his waist. She nodded to herself. "Looks like this'll do. Try it on and Gajeel and i will be waiting outside of the dressing rooms to see how it looks." Natsu grumbled, but grabbed the suit from out of her hands.

He trudged his way up to the dressing room and slammed the door shut. He heard as Gajeel laughed again, but ignored him. Even though this was such a hassle, he smiled to himself. This will be the chance he finally gets to really express his feelings towards his partner. He really did love her. He took off his vest and squeezed on the top. It was slightly tight at the shoulders but it wasn't too bad. The pants fit just fine. He stepped out. He watched as Levy's face brightened.

"Oh Natsu, you look so handsome! She'll probably faint when she sees you." Natsu flushed slightly but gave a smirk in Gajeel's direction. Gajeel only huffed and turned his head away from the two of them. "Okay Natsu, I'll pay for it quickly but you have to leave right now. It's almost five now." Natsu nodded and waited for Levy to pay. When she did, he thanked her and left. "Hey!" Levy stopped him.

"What?" He asked her.

"Make sure to get her flowers. Cherry blossoms, her favorite. Me and Gajeel will meet you two at the festival, I hope that you took my advice!" He gave her a dazzling smile and nodded. He ran to the nearest flower shop and bought her the cherry blossoms.

"Yup, these'll glow rainbow once the trees do. Your lover will be thrilled." The shop owner said, smug. Natsu felf himself heat up at the word lover, but he chose to ignore that.

"Thanks old man." He tossed him the right amount of money and ran out of the shop. It was five minutes till five. He had to run just to make it there on time. He contemplated going through the window but the little voice in his head (Levy) told him that wasn't how you picked up a girl. He nodded at the little levy in his head and decided to knock on her door.

"Just a minute!" He heard her say. He also heard several curses and the sound of her tripping on something. "Fuck!" He heard through the door before it was ripped open, almost off it's hinges. He just blinked down at her, she was stunning.

Her hair looked slightly shorter and the sides were held up up in the back, creating a ring of sorts around her head. She had two bobby pins in her hair that has zodiac on each. Cancer, her own sign and Leo. She wore a red spaghetti strap dress that was tight at the waist and flowed beautifully to just above her knees. On the dress, a black bow was tied in the back at her middle. She wore dark tights with black high heels. Her lips were glossy, she must of just put lip gloss on. He felt his mouth grow dry.

"N-Natsu! I thought you were gonna jump through the window. You must of heard me in there, that's embarrassing." He shook his head, trying to rid himself of certain thoughts. He held out the flowers he had behind his back. He practically shoved them in her face.

"You look beautiful tonight, Lucy..." She blinked and went as red as her dress. She put a piece of her golden strands behind her ear.

"Thank you, these are beautiful flowers Natsu. How did you know that cherry blossoms are my favorite?"

"Well, you love the festival so much," she gave him a look, telling him she didn't believe him. "...Levy told me."

"Should of figured. Oh well, it doesn't matter. It's the thought that counts and i didn't expect it. It was very sweet of you." She smiled softly and put them in a vase on her coffee table. She grabbed her black bag and took his hand in hers. "Ready?" He felt a shiver crawl down his back at the contact.

"Ready."

"By the way, you look reallyy handsome. You clean up nice." He looked away with a blush. They left the building and made their way to the park. It was where the bingo was being held. They decided that they'd try out the bingo challenge and then split off from the rest of Fairy Tail and check out the rest of the festival. They found Fairy Tail members sitting on multiple picnic blankets. They were all in their respective groups. They found themselves joining in with Happy, Gray, Erza, Juvia, Levy, And Gajeel.

"Oh Lu-chan, you look absolutely beautiful!" Levy giggled and hugged the taller mage. Lucy thanked her and complimented her back. Levy then smiled deviously and whispered over to Lucy. "I picked out his suit, do ya like it?" Lucy blushed red and placed her face in her hands.

"Levy-chan! Stop embarrassing me!" Levy only laughed and pat the blonde's back. Natsu had watched the situation and grunted in embarrassment. Though he did like that Lucy liked his outfit and thought he was good looking.

"Wow flame brain, you do clean up nice. Of course you'd only do it for Lucy." Gray chuckled and rolled his eyes. Juvia positioned herself close to Gray, hugging his arm. Erza was on the other side of him, eating a piece of strawberry cake.

"Ooo, he likes her!"

"Shut up, Happy!"

"Jeez ya heater, I thought Levy and me taught you to act polite on this date."

"Wait, Gajeel and Levy helped you? Priceless!"

"Gray, don't act so rude. I think it was sweet that Natsu wanted help to give Lucy the perfect night."

"Yes, juvia agrees. It's very cute!"

Natsu groaned at the many voices talking about his private business. He just ignored everyone he was sitting around and pulled Lucy close to him as Mira passed out the bingo cards. Mira smiled and yelled into the microphone, which got everyone's attention.

"Hello and welcome to the festival! I hope you're enjoying it all so far! So here we have three prizes that are being presented for three winners. The third place prize is a ticket for a free meal at the guild. The second place prize is a fifty-thousand jewel cash prize, and the first place prize is," She paused as everyone was on the edge of their seats, waiting for her to continue. "Is a modeling gig to be on the cover of sorcerer weekly magazine!" She smiled and ignored the disappointed moans of the men, and even some women.

"What a crap first place prize. I'd take the second place prize." Natsu scoffed. He looked over at Lucy to see her excited face.

"Wow, I'd kill to be on the cover of sorcerer weekly. I gotta win that first place prize." He frowned deeply at this. If she was on the cover, men would no doubt buy the magazine and ogle her body. He clenched his fist in anger. He then heard Erza chuckle.

"Good luck Lucy, but I plan on winning this year's first place prize. It wouldn't be too bad to be on the cover." Natsu now really hoped Erza won. Lucy narrowed her eyes in determination, but she smiled.

"You're on, Erza." That's when the game had started. Natsu looked at his card. He had gotten three in a row so far. He looked at Lucy's from the corner of her eye. She hadn't gotten one yet. He sighed in relief.

"G24!" Mira announced. He watched as Lucy's face lit up.

"Finally. I thought I was going to lose, but maybe my luck is starting to change."

"Bingo!" Someone had yelled, but it was reluctant. Lucy's face dropped and she pouted, her bottom lip sticking out. Natsu had the sudden urge to kiss her plump lips. He inwardly groaned as his thoughts were starting to come back. Everyone laughed as Elfman stood and handed in his bingo card for Mira to check.

"Yup, good job Elfman! You get the first place prize." Elfman looked uncomfortable taking the first prize, but he stood tall. Everyone kept laughing as he was led away by Jason so that he could get, quite on quote "fitted" for the cover. The game kept on going, everyone going for the cash prize. Natsu's eyes widened as he looked at his card. He got a bingo. He stood up quickly.

"Bingo!" Everyone sighed in disappointment as Natsu made his way to get the prize. Mira checked his card and handed him the jewels. He hadn't planned to keep it, but he wanted to give it to his date. He ran back to Lucy and tossed her the jewels. She caught it and looked up at him in shock. He just smiled. "I would of rather wanted the free meal. You can have my prize." He knew she was short on money. It may not have been a lot, but it would get her by. Her lips twitched into a smile and she jumped up and hugged him.

"Thank you so much, I'm so grateful to you!" He laughed and hugged her back. The rest of his group either smiled or rolled their eyes.

"Ew, salamander, do that somewhere else. My teeth are starting to rot at this heartfelt moment." Gajeel gagged, making everyone laugh. Natsu glared at him and held up his middle finger. Gajeel just laughed with the rest of them.

"Hey, Lucy? Want to check out the rest of the festival?"

"Sure, Natsu. I was loosing anyway." Lucy giggled. They left everyone and ran off the the other side of the park, where the civilians were celebrating. There were multiple booths they could try food at and grab free masks and other trinkets. Lucy had ran up to a booth that had Fairy Tail plushies on them. "Oh look! It's me!" Natsu gazed at the little Lucy plushie and suddenly picked it up. He stuffed it in his pocket when she didn't notice. Lucy grabbed a Happy plushie and they left the booth. Little did he know, she grabbed Natsu's plushie counterpart when he wasn't looking.

"Hey little lady, wanna try some cotton candy?" A man had asked behind his own booth. He was old and round, but looked and acted very polite. Lucy had smiled brightly and look it from him, thanking him. She took a bite and grinned. She held it up to Natsu.

"Wanna try some, Natsu. It's so good!" She was so happy, he couldn't refuse her. He grabbed a piece of the cotton candy and popped it in his mouth. _It was really good._

"Eh, its alright." She giggled at his neutral reaction.

They had done that for most of the day. They would go to all kinds of different booths and try new things. That would laugh when the other did something silly and tease the other when they got embarrassed. Levy had told him to act more romantic, but him being himself had worked out to be a great idea. He hadn't seen Lucy smile so much in weeks. Their evening had finally slowed down when the trees started to glow. Both Lucy and Natsu were sitting on top of a hill, Natsu had told her it was a great place to view the cherry blossoms as they turned rainbow.

"Natsu, this has honestly been the best day of my my life. I've had so much fun." Lucy smiled shyly. She slid closer to him and waited for his reaction. He felt his cheeks burn, but a smile had also made it's way to his lips.

"Me too, Luce. Like you said, it's always more fun when we're together." She squeaked as he teased and poked fun at her. Her face went red as she hid from him in his shoulder. She pouted and called him a jerk, but he knew she didn't mean it. That was when the blossoms started to turn rainbow. Lucy ripped her face out of his shoulder and gawked at the sight.

In all the years he's seen this happen, he never actually realized how beautiful the trees were. Maybe it was Lucy's excitement that made him study the trees and realize their true beauty. He sighed, he guessed this was as good a time as any. "Lucy...?" She stopped looking at the trees and shifted her attention to him. "I need to tell you something."

"Y-Yeah?" She asked, nervousness making it's way to her face. She didn't look uncomfortable, that was a good sign. He slowly felt himself lean in closer and to his surprise, she did the same. "I..."

"You...?" She whispered, inches away from his lips. A pit of warmth was pooling at the bottom of the his stomach by now. He didn't know just how long he was waiting for this moment.

"I love you." He crashed his lips onto hers and she kissed him back not even a second later. They slowly started to move their lips in sync, he then licked her lips, making her gasp. It allowed him to slip his tounge into her mouth, their tounges starting to fight for dominance. Just as they were starting to really get into it, they were stopped by a sudden voice.

"Natsu! Lucy! Where are you two?" Happy had shouted, a distance away. Gajeel and Levy were behind him. Lucy and Natsu ripped away from each other, trying not to get caught. They looked into each other's eyes for a short while. Lucy decided to speak up.

"I've been waiting for that kiss for a while now..." He felt himself grin brightly. He pecked her lips quickly.

"Really? I guess we both have something in common in that department."

* * *

 **The End! I had a lot of trouble coming up with this idea, but I'm glad I thought of this. This was so fun to write. Maybe I'll do something small like this again some time, but for now I hoped you all enjoyed this story.**


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